Quadruple Aim Demands SelfCare for HealthCare Workers

The movement to add a fourth component to the healthcare industry’s ideal of the Triple Aim is gaining steam.

In its current form, the Triple Aim – better care, better health and lower costs – fails to acknowledge workers’ critical role in transforming healthcare, Rishi Sikka, of Advocate Health Care, Julianne Morath, of the Hospital Quality Institute, and Lucian Leape, of the Harvard School of Public Health, write in an opinion piece in the BMJ Quality & Safety journal. Thus, they call for a Quadruple Aim that emphasizes the original three goals plus the goal of improving caregivers’ experiences, echoing a similar piece published late last year in the Annals of Family Medicine.

Reams of research indicate that many healthcare workers not only fail to find joy and meaning in their work, but also are at risk of serious physical and psychological harm on the job. Indeed, worker injuries are escalating in the healthcare industry, workplace violence is on the rise, and peer bullying and burnout are taking their toll on many clinicians.

To achieve the quadruple aim, the authors write that healthcare organizations must improve metrics in two broad areas: workforce engagement and workforce safety.

Organizations may also want to encourage their clinicians – especially nurses – to practice self-care, which can help combat worker infighting and other stressors in the workplace, Susan Groenwald, Ph.D., R.N., president of the Chamberlain College of Nursing, recently told FierceHealthcare.

To bring selfcare to your nurses and organization, try our SelfCare for HealthCare™ program. We strive to improve healthcare facilities, and the support provided to nurses and other caretakers.